"It's sort of taken over my life. It seems like I've been doing non-profit housing for the past several months," says Siepman, president of the Association of Reformed Christian Churches in Action (ARCIA), the organization behind a housing project at the corner of Knowles Avenue and Gateway Road.
For Siepman and the many others who have devoted countless hours to planning The Cornerstone Life Lease Estates seniors condominium project, it has been time well spent.
"We're a volunteer organization and we weren't in this to make any money," he says, adding the condos are for sale to any interested seniors or people over 55 years old, regardless of religious denomination.
"There are long waiting lists for assisted living in that part of town, so we are meeting a need and trying to do it in an affordable way."
Maurice Allard, who works for a non-profit organization that provides social support and recreational activities for seniors, says the northeast has one of the highest concentrations of older adults in the city.
"Waiting lists for seniors' housing can be three to four years," says the manager of development and membership services for Age and Opportunity Inc.
Although a one-bedroom condo can be purchased at Cornerstone for about $67,000, it will likely be too expensive for seniors scraping by on Canada pensions, Allard says. Mid-range, affordable seniors' condos like Cornerstone, however, are still likely to be very much in demand, he adds.
With its sales campaign starting this weekend, Cornerstone's developers anticipate keen interest in the project because its target is seniors leading active lives.
"The idea is that it will be life in transition, so it will have two phases," says Re/Max agent Bill Thiessen, who is helping with marketing.
"One is called Independent Living, which simply means a place to live -- no different from a house or a condo."
Thiessen said purchasers can start in the Independent Living side of the project with full condos just as you'd expect any condo to be outfitted. If their situation changes, they can apply to move to the other side, where meals are provided and condos have limited kitchenettes. This second phase, called Assisted Living, provides three meals a day and laundry service once a week.
"Everyone's familiar with going to Mexico and staying at an all-inclusive resort," he says. "We won't be including mai tais or pina coladas, but we are deeming that side to be all-inclusive."
Thiessen said Cornerstone is "absolutely not" a nursing home. When residents become infirm to the point of needing full-time medical assistance, staff will work with them to find a space in an actual nursing home.
Between the two living areas is the Downtown, a 13,000-square-foot, glass-enclosed communal area that includes a lounge, cafeteria, workshop, greenhouse and other amenities.
"It will employ lots of natural light," says Jerald Peters, architect for Friesen Tokar, which has designed Cornerstone to have a look and feel similar to its upscale project on Waterfront Drive called The Strand.
"The Cornerstone project is quite contemporary in its style, but with a warm and rich environment in terms of the palette of material used," Peters says, adding the finished building will feature stone, exposed wood and earth-tone colours.
Prices will range from $67,302 for a 50 per cent deposit on a one-bedroom unit to $245,892 for a two-bedroom and two-bathroom unit with a 100 per cent deposit.
The Cornerstone's units may be too pricey for low-income seniors, but Thiessen says condos of similar quality would cost between $300,000 and $700,000 in Winnipeg.
As a life-lease development, seniors can put down 50 or 75 per cent instead 100 per cent of the cost, which cuts down on the initial investment.
They receive the money back when they decide to leave or if they die. Monthly condo fees also apply, based on the size of the condominium, the amount of money deposited and the services provided, Thiessen says.
Fees can range from as low as $396 per month for an Independent Living, one-bedroom unit with 100 per cent deposit, to as high as $1,676 a month for an Assisted Living, two-bedroom and one-and-a-half bath with a 50 per cent deposit.
"We hope to provide the nicest seniors' housing project in Winnipeg at a pricing point that we think is now very out of step with the market in a good way," Thiessen says.
"Prices have escalated so much in the past few years that this will really stand out as pretty good value."
The Cornerstone Life at a glance
* 67 Assisted Living units and 73 Independent Living units with floor space from 600 to 1,200 square feet and 8-foot-8-inch ceilings (13-foot-8-inch ceilings on top-floor condos)
* Prices range from $67,302 for a 50 per cent deposit on a one-bedroom condo to $245,892 for a two-bedroom condo at a 100 per cent deposit.
* When moving from Independent Living to Assisted Living condos, residents can apply their deposit to the price of the Assisted Living condo.
* Amenities include underground parking, movie/games room, two hotel-style guest rooms, car-wash bay, screened outdoor patios, walking trails, greenhouse, BBQ patio, gardens
* Half-block from bus service; adjacent to Northeast Pioneers Greenway
* Construction begins in summer 2008 for occupancy in fall 2009
* Condo fee covers property taxes, utilities (heat, power and water), property insurance, maintenance and administration.
